Has anyone had any issues with V4 not printing overhangs that V3 could handle no problem?
Hey there!
Would you mind posting either the file, or even a screenshot of the specific part? It’s tough to offer tips when I haven’t seen the part in question, but I’d be more than happy to take a look!
Here are some N-scale fire hydrants printed using Grey V4, the smaller spigots on either side are .4 mm long and should not require any support. As you can see all of the spigots are either missing or deformed.
In both cases, you need to re-orientate the parts. For the fire hydrants turn the part through 45 degrees and put a support on the end of the lower spigot. For the roof again turn it through 45 degrees so the lowest point is a corner. Grey V4 really doesn’t like straight edges that are parallel to the build platform.
As per this post :
V3 and V4 are identical. I suspect that if there is a difference when printing the same file with the two resins, that it may have more to do with the fact that Formlabs updates the print settings only for the most recent version. This would mean that tricking the printer into thinking it’s setup with V3 instead of V4 may do the trick… that would require either reprogramming the cartridge chip, pouring V4 into a V3 cartridge or using Open mode.
I don’t want to put any support on the two smaller hydrant spigots, too easy to snip the spigot off completely when removing the support. They need to be self supporting.
John, there is obvious some physical difference because V4 foams like crazy where V3 did not. How can the cartridge be reprogrammed?
I’m not quite sure what you’re trying to say here, but the exposure settings that PreForm gives the printer for Grey V3 and Grey V4 are virtually identical. That makes sense, because, as you say, the materials are almost identical. Trying to trick the printer into thinking you’ve got the other material isn’t likely to accomplish anything.
Thanks for chiming in ! Glad to see that you guys are here to correct us when something wrong is being said.
My advice was based on word from one of your colleagues months ago (unfortunately I can’t put my hands on the specific thread/post), in which they said that when an update is made to the exposure settings (or else), only the most recent versions of a given resin takes them into account. My (vague) recollection is that this concerned the Clear resin for which a correction had been made for V4 but didn’t make it to V2… now I must confess I do not recall if this was an error or a standard behavior.
If the printer treats Grey V3 and V4 in exactly the same way then it’s all good news and my previous post is obviously irrelevant. That would indicate however that the resins aren’t quite identical since @eaelec isn’t getting the same results.
The only thing I can do is trust Formlab’s word that the resins are identical 
As for reprogramming the cartridge, you should look on the forums. Someone made a contraption to do just that, but sinceI have no need for this kind of manipulation I haven’t looked into it at all. As per @mgarrity’s word though, this manipulation should not change your results… you could still try to put some V4 in an empty V3 cartridge if you still have one and try the same print that way.
Could it be it’s not Grey V4 in general but rather something wrong with this particular cartridge? I don’t think it can be expired because V4 hasen’t been around that long. I had a case with a cartridge of black V3 that got stuck in a blizzard and frozen during shipping and was completely useless. We did have some unusually cold weather here in Canada in June. What else can happen to a cartridge?
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